(a) Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to liquid crystal displays and thin film transistor array panels for liquid crystal displays.
(b) Discussion of Related Art
Liquid crystal displays (LCDs) are one of the most widely used flat panel displays. An LCD includes a liquid crystal (LC) layer interposed between two panels provided with field-generating electrodes. The LCD displays images by applying voltages to the field-generating electrodes to generate an electric field in the LC layer, which determines orientations of LC molecules in the LC layer to adjust polarization of incident light.
A disadvantage of LCDs is that they have a narrow viewing angle. Various techniques for enlarging the viewing angle have been proposed, including a technique utilizing a vertically aligned LC and providing cutouts or protrusions at the field-generating electrodes, such as the pixel electrodes and the common electrode.
Since the cutouts and the protrusions reduce the aperture ratio, the area occupied by the cutouts and the protrusions must be minimized. However, the width of the cutouts and the protrusions should be larger than a predetermined value and the distance between the cutouts and the protrusion should be smaller than a predetermined value to obtain stable LC domains defined by the cutouts and the protrusions and low response time of the LC.
Accordingly, there is a need for a thin film transistor panel of a liquid crystal display that provides an enlarged viewing angle while ensuring stable LC domains and low response time.